Liberal political movements call for protest Friday
Egypt Independent
10/14/12
Mohamed ElBaradei’s Constitution Party and the Popular Current movement, a coalition of several civilian parties, called for peaceful marches on Friday, 19 October to protest last Friday’s violence in Tahrir Square.
The protest, labeled, “Egypt is for all Egyptians,” would call for immediate investigations into the violence so that the perpetrators may be punished.
Several political parties had organized a protest on Friday, 12 October to condemn President Mohamed Morsy’s failure to address critical issues during the first 100 days of his term, while the Muslim Brotherhood called for a protest against the Battle of the Camel acquittals. Morsy supporters and opponents clashed during the rally and more than 100 people were injured, according to news reports.
The Constitution Party and the Popular Current issued a joint statement on Sunday saying that they hold the president responsible for obtaining information about the violence and sending those responsible to trial.
The statement added that the clashes Friday occurred because “some of the members of the ruling party could not recognize the opposition’s right to express its opinion peacefully” and added that the Brotherhood tried to disrupt their protest and change its name.
The statement accused the ruling party of repeating the mistakes of the former regime rather than working to achieve national consensus, and held Morsy and the Muslim Brotherhood responsible for violence during the clashes.
The Friday protest will also demand social justice, a minimum wage tied to the price of goods and the restructuring of the Constituent Assembly to better represent all Egyptians.